Packaging design with separate compartments

ABSTRACT

A gum packaging design that utilizes two separate compartments, an upper compartment and a lower compartment. Each of the compartments may be formed from a separate paperboard blank. The blanks are folded to form the compartments and then the lower compartment is adhered to the upper compartment in a fashion that allows the lower compartment to be later separated therefrom by tearing along a perforation after the lower compartment is emptied. A cover flap on the upper compartment can be used to hold the package in a compact, closed position by folding the compartments to face each other and tucking an end into a receiving slot formed in the back panel of the lower compartment. Once the lower compartment is separated from the upper compartment, the same cover flap can be used to close the remaining package by tucking the same end of the cover flap into a receiving slot formed in a front panel of the upper compartment.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Nos. 60/570,004, filed May 11, 2004, entitled “Gum SlabPackaging with Adhesive Securement”, 60/570,015, filed May 11, 2004,entitled “Gum Slab Packaging having Adhesive Flap”, and 60/576,122,filed Jun. 2, 2004, entitled “Packaging Design with SeparateCompartments”, the contents of each of which are incorporated herein byreference.

FIELD

This invention relates generally to packaging for chewing gum and otherproducts, and more particularly to multiple compartment packaging forchewing gum and other products.

BACKGROUND

Chewing gum is currently available to consumers in a variety ofdifferent formats. These include stick gum, slab gum, pellet gum,extruded gum, and others. Stick gum may come in sizes with a length ofapproximately 6-7 cm, a width of approximately 1.5-2 cm, and a thicknessof approximately 0.2 cm. Slab gum may come in a size of approximately4.5 cm in length, 1.2 cm in width, and 0.3 cm in thickness.

A variety of types of gum packaging also exist, including certain typesof packaging used predominantly for one or the other of the gum formats.Slabs of gum have often been sold in foil packages. Originally, theseslabs were arranged in a package in a side-to-side manner, perhapsincluding five to seven slabs per package. More recently, these slabshave been arranged within the foil packages in a face-to-face manner,allowing 15-20 slabs to be contained in a convenient package.

Such packaging is currently popular and achieves satisfactory results.It has been discovered, however, that this approach does have certaindrawbacks. These drawbacks relate to the lack of a suitable means forclosing the package once it has been opened. Typically, a portion of thefoil packaging is torn off to allow access to the slabs. The package maythen be stored or placed in a purse, jacket, or pants pocket. Whilestored in this manner, some of the slabs may fall out of the package.Also, while stored in this manner it is very possible for foreignmaterial, such as lint, dirt, and so forth, to enter the package.Subsequently, when the package is retrieved from the purse or pocket,some of the slabs may have slipped out of the package and be loose inthe purse or pocket. Also, the package may not look appealing onceretrieved from the purse or pocket, due to foreign material that mayhave entered or adhered to the package. This point is important to thosewho market gum products, as they seek to enhance the social aspects ofsharing the contents of the gum package with others.

It is against this background and with a desire to improve on the priorart that a packaging design for gum and other products has beendeveloped.

SUMMARY

A package for containing pieces of an edible product is provided thatincludes an upper compartment and a lower compartment, each compartmentbeing formed to receive and contain a plurality of individual pieces ofan edible product. The upper compartment is at least partially enclosedon five sides thereof, including a back wall, a front wall, a bottomwall, and a pair of lateral side walls. The lower compartment is atleast partially enclosed on five sides thereof, including a back wall, afront wall, a bottom wall, and a pair of lateral side walls. A flapconnects the upper and lower compartments to each other.

The upper and lower compartments may be separable from each other. Theconnection of the flap to the upper compartment may be treated to assistin separating the compartments from each other. The upper compartmentmay be treated by creating a perforated score line.

The package may further include a cover flap connected to the back wallof the upper compartment. The cover flap may be selectably engageablewith the back wall of the lower compartment. The back wall of the lowercompartment may include a receiving slot defined therein for selectablyreceiving a portion of the cover flap. The cover flap may be selectablyengageable with the front wall of the upper compartment. The front wallof the upper compartment may include a receiving slot defined thereinfor selectably receiving a portion of the cover flap.

The flap may have a height approximately equal to the sum of one of thepair of side walls of the upper compartment and one of the pair of sidewalls of the lower compartment. The flap may have a height approximatelyequal to one of the pair of side walls of the lower compartment. Theflap may be connected in a manner to cause the back wall of the lowercompartment to be generally aligned with the back wall of the uppercompartment when the lower compartment is allowed to hang downward fromthe upper compartment. The flap may be connected in a manner to causethe back wall of the lower compartment to be generally aligned with thefront wall of the upper compartment when the lower compartment isallowed to hang downward from the upper compartment.

The package may be formed from two paperboard blanks, one of which formsthe upper compartment and another of which forms the lower compartment.The pieces of an edible product may be individual slabs of chewing gum.The front walls of the upper and lower compartments may be partialwalls, to allow access to the individual pieces of an edible productthat may be contained in the compartments.

Another aspect of the package for containing pieces of an edible productincludes a first paperboard blank folded to define a compartment havinga back wall, a front wall, a bottom wall, and a pair of lateral sidewalls and a second paperboard blank folded to define a compartmenthaving a back wall, a front wall, a bottom wall and a pair of lateralside walls. The second paperboard blank also include an upper flap thatis attached to the first paperboard blank so that the compartment formedby the first paperboard blank is an upper compartment and thecompartment formed by the second paperboard blank is a lowercompartment, each of the upper and lower compartments being suitablyshaped and sized to receive and contain a plurality of pieces of anedible product.

The upper and lower compartments may be connected together by a flap,the flap having a height approximately equal to the sum of one of thepair of side walls of the upper compartment and one of the pair of sidewalls of the lower compartment. The upper and lower compartments may beconnected together by a flap, the flap having a height approximatelyequal to one of the pair of side walls of the lower compartment.

Another aspect of the method of forming a package for containing piecesof an edible product includes providing a first and a second paperboardblank and folding the first paperboard blank to form a cover flap and acompartment having a back wall, a front wall, a bottom wall, and a pairof lateral side walls, the compartment being suitably shaped and sizedto receive and contain a plurality of pieces of an edible product. Themethod also includes folding the second paperboard blank to form aconnecting flap and a compartment having a back wall, a front wall, abottom wall, and a pair of lateral side walls, the compartment beingsuitably shaped and sized to receive and contain a plurality of piecesof an edible product, and attaching the connecting flap of the secondpaperboard blank to the first paperboard blank.

The method may further include pivoting the compartment formed of thefirst paperboard blank relative to the connecting flap and pivoting thecompartment formed of the second paperboard blank relative to theconnecting flap to bring the front walls of each compartment adjacent toeach other. The method may further include folding the cover flap overat least a portion of the compartment formed of the second paperboardblank. The method may further include selectably engaging a portion ofthe cover flap with the compartment formed of the second paperboardblank. The compartment formed of the second paperboard blank may includea slot formed in the back wall thereof to receive a portion of the coverflap.

The method may further include separating a substantial majority of thesecond paperboard blank from the first paperboard blank at a subsequenttime. The method may further include folding the cover flap over atleast a portion of the compartment formed of the first paperboard blank.The method may further include selectably engaging a portion of thecover flap with the compartment formed of the first paperboard blank.The compartment formed of the first paperboard blank may include a slotformed in the front wall thereof to receive a portion of the cover flap.

Another aspect of the package for containing pieces of an edible productincludes a first paperboard blank folded to define an upper compartmentto receive and contain a plurality of pieces of an edible product, theupper compartment being at least partially enclosed on five sidesthereof, and including a back wall, a front wall, a bottom wall, and apair of lateral side walls. The package also includes a secondpaperboard blank folded to define a lower compartment to receive andcontain a plurality of pieces of an edible product, the towercompartment being at least partially enclosed on five sides thereof, andincluding a back wall, a front wall, a bottom wall, and a pair oflateral side walls, wherein the second paperboard blank also includes anupper flap that is attached to the first paperboard blank. The packagefurther includes a cover flap connected to the back wall of the uppercompartment, wherein the cover flap is selectably engageable with areceiving slot defined in the back wall of the lower compartment.

Another aspect of the package for containing pieces of an edible productincludes a first compartment and a second compartment, each compartmentbeing formed to receive and contain a plurality of pieces of a product.The first compartment is at least partially enclosed on five sidesthereof, including a back wall, a front wall, a bottom wall, and a pairof lateral side walls. The second compartment is at least partiallyenclosed on five sides thereof, including a back wall, a front wall, abottom wall, and a pair of lateral side walls. The first and secondcompartment are connected to each other by a flap.

Another aspect of the package for containing pieces of an edible productincludes a first paperboard blank folded to define a compartment havinga back wall, a front wall, a bottom wall, and a pair of lateral sidewalls, and a second paperboard blank folded to define a compartmenthaving a back wall, a front wall, a bottom wall, and a pair of lateralside walls. The second paperboard blank also includes an upper flap thatis attached to the first paperboard blank so that the compartment formedby the first paperboard blank is an upper compartment and thecompartment formed by the second paperboard blank is a lowercompartment, each of the upper and lower compartments being suitablyshaped and sized to receive and contain pieces of a product.

Numerous additional features and advantages of the present inventionwill become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration ofthe further description that follows.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the packaging design, shown in a closedposition.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the packaging design of FIG. 1, shown inan open position and containing a plurality of individually packagedslabs of gum.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the packaging design of FIG. 1, after anempty lower compartment thereof has been separated therefrom.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the remaining portion of the packagingdesign of FIG. 3, showing a cover flap thereof tucked in place to closethe package, after the empty lower compartment has been removed.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a first unfolded paperboard blank used to formthe upper compartment and cover flap of the packaging design.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the blank of FIG. 5, showing the sideflaps folded up, and the bottom flap partially folded.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of a second unfolded paperboard blank used to formthe lower compartment of the packaging design.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the blank of FIG. 7, showing the sideflaps folded up, the bottom flap partially folded up, and the connectingflap folded down, with adhesive applied thereto.

FIG. 9 is a plan view of a second embodiment of the packaging design,showing an alternative shape for the cover flap and receiving slot, thecover flap being tucked into the receiving slot.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of the second embodiment shown in FIG. 9, thecover flap being untucked from the receiving slot and partially foldedupward.

FIG. 11 is a plan view of the second embodiment shown in FIG. 9, thecover flap being untucked from the receiving slot and folded upward andwith a lower compartment removed.

FIG. 12 is a plan view of an opposite side of the second embodimentshown in FIG. 9, the cover flap being untucked from the receiving slotand folded upward and the lower compartment allowed to swing down andhang from the lower compartment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which assist inillustrating the various pertinent features of the packaging design.Although the invention will now be described primarily in conjunctionwith gum packaging, it should be expressly understood that the inventionmay be applicable to other applications where multiple separablecompartments, each for one or more removable objects, isrequired/desired. In this regard, the following description of a gumpackaging design is presented for purposes of illustration anddescription. Furthermore, the description is not intended to limit theinvention to the form disclosed herein. Consequently, variations andmodifications commensurate with the following teachings, and skill andknowledge of the relevant art, are within the scope of the packagingdesign. The embodiments described herein are further intended to explainmodes known of practicing the invention and to enable others skilled inthe art to utilize the invention in such, or other embodiments and withvarious modifications required by the particular application(s) oruse(s) of the packaging design.

The packaging design employs two paperboard blanks 10 and 12 (FIGS. 5and 7), scored in a manner to be folded so that each form a compartmentfor containing a consumable product, such as chewing gum. One of theblanks forms an upper compartment 14, while the other of the blanksforms a lower compartment 16. One blank (or compartment) is adhered tothe other in a manner to allow one to be easily separated from the otherby tearing along a perforation. The compartments 14 and 16 areoriginally provided in this attached manner and folded together to placeone facing the other, with a cover flap 18 from the upper compartment 14having an end 20 laid over a receiving slot 22 in a back panel 24 of thelower compartment 16. The consumer can tuck this end 20 into the slot 22to form a compact package 26, such as is shown in FIG. 1.

Once purchased, a clear film (not shown) can be removed from the package18 so that the customer can lift the flap 18 to allow the lowercompartment 16 to swing down into the position shown in FIG. 2. In thisposition, the customer can remove slabs 28 of the product as desired orshare with others. The package 26 can then be returned to its originalconfiguration as shown in FIG. 1. If the customer wishes, they canconsume the slabs 28 of gum from the lower compartment 16 first andthen, once emptied, separate the compartments 14 and 16 from each otherby tearing along a perforated score line as shown in FIG. 3. Next, ifdesired, the customer can fold the cover flap 18 down over the uppercompartment 14 and tuck the end 20 of the cover flap 18 into a receivingslot 84 formed in the upper compartment 14 (as shown in FIG. 4) andcontinue to use the upper compartment 14 of the package 26 in thismanner until all the product is consumed.

As shown in FIG. 5, the first paperboard blank 10 has the cover flap 18extending from one side thereof and a bottom flap 30 extending from anopposite side thereof. On the lateral sides of the first paperboardblank 10, a pair of lateral side flaps 32 and 34 extend in oppositedirections. The remaining central portion of the first paperboard blank10 forms a back panel 35 for the upper compartment 14. The firstpaperboard blank 10 is composed of SBS (solid bleach sulfate)paperboard, in part because of the good folding properties of thismaterial. Alternatively, the compartments 14 and 16 could be composed ofsome other suitable material, such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Thepaperboard material may have a white clay emulsion coating on an outsidesurface thereof and no coating on an inside surface thereof. The coatingenhances the ability to print on the paperboard, which may occur priorto the cut, scoring, and assembly steps described below. There couldalso be a laminate of holographic material added to the printed side.

As can be seen in FIG. 5, the cover flap 18 is generally five-sided withone side being defined along the score line 36, two orthogonal lateralsides 54 and 56 and a pair of top sides 58 and 60 that extend from thelateral sides 54 and 56 and meet at the end 20 of the cover flap 18. Thebottom flap 30 includes a side that is defined by the score line 40, apair of orthogonal lateral sides 62 and 64 and a bottom side 66 that isorthogonal to the lateral sides 62 and 64. The lateral side flaps 32 and34 are mirror images of each other, so only lateral side flap 32 will bedescribed in detail. The lateral side flap 32 includes a generallyrectangular portion between the score lines 42 and 52 that will form aside panel 68 to the upper compartment 14. The remaining portion of thelateral side flap 32 forms a front wing 70 after the lateral side flap32 is folded along score lines 42 and 52. The front wing includes agenerally rectangular section and a generally triangular section locatedabove the generally rectangular section.

As can be appreciated in FIG. 5, the first paperboard blank 10 is scoredin multiple places along score lines 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 46, 48, 50, and52. Lines 36, 38, 40, 42, and 44 are regular score lines, while lines46, 48, 50, and 52 are cut score lines. A regular score line is a creaseformed in the paperboard using a tool having male and female matchingchannels that are applied to the paperboard blank 10 from opposite sidesto form a V shape in the material. A cut score line differs from aregular score line in that the cut score line is not only scored in themanner described above, but small slits are also cut entirely throughthe material at spaced apart locations along the line. A cut scorecreates a line that is easier to fold than does a regular score line.The drawback is that a cut score line does not have as neat anappearance as a regular score line when the assembled closed is viewedexternally by a consumer. For this reason, lines that will be visiblewhen the package is fully assembled, as shown in FIG. 1, are regularscore lines while the remaining fold lines may be cut score lines.

As is illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6, the lateral side flaps 32 and 34 arefolded along score lines 42, 52, 38, and 48 to form the front wings 70,while the bottom flap 30 is folded along score lines 40 and 50 to form abottom wall 80 and a front panel 82. Adhesive (not shown) can then beapplied to the surface of the front wings facing toward the front paneland/or to the portion of the front panel facing toward the front wingsto affix the front panel 82 to the front wings 70. In this manner, theupper compartment 14 is formed from the first paperboard blank 10.

The bottom flap 30 includes a receiving slot 84 formed in the frontpanel 82 thereof. In FIG. 4, the upper compartment 14 is shown with theend 20 of the cover flap 18 inserted into the receiving slot 84 on thefront panel 82 of the upper compartment 14. As can be appreciated, it isintended that this slot 84 would only be used to close the package whenthe lower compartment 16 has been removed.

The second paperboard blank 12 is similar to the first paperboard blankin many respects. It is composed of the same material and has a claycoating on one side to enhance the ability to print material thereon.The second paperboard blank 12 also includes a bottom flap 90 andlateral side flaps 92 and 94 that are identical to the bottom flap 30and lateral side flaps 32 and 34 of the first paperboard blank 10. Theprimary differences between the second paperboard blank 12 and thepaperboard blank 10 relate to a connecting flap 96 on the secondpaperboard blank 12 and the receiving slot 22 on the lower compartment16.

The connecting flap 96 of the second paperboard blank 12 issignificantly different than the cover flap 18 of the first paperboardblank 10. The connecting flap 96 is generally rectangular with one sidebeing defined by a regular score line 98 on a bottom side thereof, apair of lateral sides 100 and 102, and a top side 104. A perforatedscore line 106 divides the connecting flap 96 into an upper portion 108and a lower portion 110. The perforated score line 106 includes a scoreand a series of perforations that are close enough together to onlyleave that amount of paper necessary to hold the portions 108 and 110together until separation is desired. When desired, this perforatedscore line 106 enables detachment so that portions 108 and 110 can befairly easily separated by the customer. As is shown in FIGS. 2 and 8,the upper portion 108 of the connecting flap 96 includes adhesive 112applied to an inner surface thereof for attachment to the outer surfaceof the bottom wall 80 of the upper compartment 14. This is shown inFIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 3 shows the two compartments 14 and 16 after theyhave been separated from each other along the perforated score line 106.

When attached in this manner, the back panel of the lower compartment 16and the front panel of the upper compartment 14 would tend to hang ingenerally the same plane when in the open position of FIG. 2 and withthe upper compartment held vertically, allowing the lower compartment tohang downwardly therefrom. The lower portion 110 of the connecting flapcould then be sized to have a height approximately equal to a side wallof the lower compartment.

The lower compartment 16 also differs from the upper compartment 14 inthe location and orientation of the receiving slot 22 on the lowercompartment 16 relative to the receiving slot 84 on the uppercompartment 14. The receiving slot 22 in the lower compartment 16 isformed in the back panel 24 of the lower compartment 16 as compared tothe front panel 82 for the receiving slot 84. In this case, thereceiving slot 22 is oriented so that the curved portion points in anopposite direction from the curved portion of the receiving slot 84 whenthe package is in the orientation shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. When the lowercompartment 16 is folded up adjacent to the upper compartment 14 in theorientation shown in FIG. 1, then the curved portion is oriented in adirection to allow the end 20 of the cover flap 18 to be engagedtherewith. Other than the differences already described with regard tothe connecting flap 96, the folding and attachment of the lateral sideflaps 92 and 94 and the bottom flap 90 to each other is performed in asimilar manner to that described above in conjunction with the uppercompartment 14.

An alternative embodiment is shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. The primarydifferences between this embodiment and the first embodiment describedabove relate to the shape of the cover flap and the location of thereceiving slots on the upper and lower compartments. As can be seen, thecover flap 120 in this embodiment is laterally asymmetrical.Consequently, the receiving slot 122 in the lower compartment is offsettoward one lateral side so as to be in position to receive an end of thecover flap 120. The receiving slot 124 in the upper compartment issimilarly offset in this manner. As can be appreciated, the teachings ofthis invention apply to other arrangements with differently-shaped coverflaps and differently-shaped and positioned receiving slots.

As another alternative (not shown), the lower compartment 16 could beattached to the upper compartment by applying adhesive 112 to the outersurface of the upper portion 108 of the connecting flap 96 forattachment to the outer surface of the bottom wall 80 of the uppercompartment 14. When attached in this manner, the back panels of each ofthe upper and lower compartments 14 and 16 would tend to hang ingenerally the same plane when in the open position of FIG. 2 and withthe upper compartment held vertically, allowing the lower compartment tohang downwardly therefrom. The lower portion 110 of the connecting flapcould then be sized to have a height approximately equal to the sum of aside wall of the upper compartment and a side wall of the lowercompartment.

Typically, the gum product is manufactured, then chilled and aged. Slaband stick gum is prepared by rolling the gum product into sheets,cutting it into lanes, then scoring it into individual pieces. It hasbeen found to be useful for the individual slabs of gum to beindividually wrapped in separate sheets of waxed paper and then a row ofsuch gum slabs wrapped in such manner can be placed in a foil half-pouch(not shown). The gum package is assembled at the same time. Thus, thepaperboard is printed, cut, and scored. It is then folded, filled,assembled, closed, and a clear film with tear tape is attached to theoutside. A display tray with twelve such packages is prepared, thesedisplay trays are over-wrapped with clear film, and then they are placedin corrugated shippers, palletized, and then shrink-wrapped. It is thenwarehoused and shipped to distribution centers.

In some embodiments, the gum slabs may be adhered or otherwise attachedto the package. This may keep the gum slabs from falling out or tippingover inside of the package. Thus, the gum slabs may be releasablysecured or attached to or into the package. There are many possibilitiesfor adhering the gum slabs into the package. One possibility would be toplace the gum slabs into or onto a foil half pouch, paper or plasticstrip, wrap around band, or other type of sheet-like material(collectively referred to herein referred to as a “sheet”) before it isplaced into the package. The sheet may include a single layer ormultiple layers. One of the layers may include moisture barrier materialto reduce the amount of moisture absorbed by the gum slabs when the gumslabs are in the package.

As an alternative to using a sheet, the gum slabs could be placeddirectly into the package without the use of a sheet. If the slabs wereplaced directly into the package, they (or their wrappers) could beadhered thereto or not. For example, the gum slabs may be adhered viawax or other adhesive to one or more inner surfaces of the package. Thewax or adhesive may be included or provided in one or more strips orbands of adhesive that adhere to more than one gum slab. The packageitself may contain a paraffin or other waxy material on its innersurface to adhere to the gum slabs. Alternatively, a plurality of wax oradhesive spots or areas may be created on one or more inner surfaces ofthe package, each attaching to one or more of the gum slabs or wrappersaround the gum slabs. If wrappers around the gum slabs are used, theadhesive used to adhere the gum slabs to the package will adhere thewrappers to the package. The adhesive bond may be strong enough toprevent or reduce the likelihood of the wrappers being removable fromthe package. Thus, the wrappers will remain in the package when the gumslabs are removed from the package and the wrappers. Alternatively, theadhesive bond between the wrappers and the package may be such that thewrapper and the gum slabs can be removed from the package, but strongenough to keep the gum slabs in the wrappers from falling out of thepackage or tipping over in the package. One potential embodiment isillustrated in U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/570,015entitled “Gum Slab Packaging Having Adhesive Flap” filed May 11, 2004,and designated as Docket No. 1421-28P in the law firm of Hoffman &Baron, LLP, the contents of which are incorporated by reference hereinfor all purposes.

As another alternative, the gum slabs may be adhered to each other,regardless of whether or not a sheet is used in the package. Forexample, drops or a strip of adhesive may be placed on the gum slabs ortheir wrappers such that the gum slabs or their wrappers are heldtogether. The drops or strip of adhesive may be placed on one or moresides of the gum slabs, which may be placed in a side-by-sideconfiguration in the package. The same or different adhesive also may beused to adhere the gum slabs to the housing and/or to a sheet.

If there is a sheet, it is possible to adhere the gum slabs to the sheetwith some type of cold or hot adhesive and then an outer part of thesheet may be adhered to the inner surface or wall of the package. One ormore adhesive strips, sports, or other areas may be used to adhere thesheet to one or more inner surfaces of the package. Alternatively, thesheet need not be adhered to the package and simply can be placed insidethe package. It may also be desirable to not adhere the slabs to thesheet and then to adhere the sheet to the package. Alternatively, thesheet need not be adhered to the package.

One possibility would include adhering both the sheet and the gum slabsto the one or more inner surfaces or walls of the package. For example,a sheet or pouch could be used that covers only a portion of the gumslabs when the gum slabs are placed on or in the sheet, so that the topportions of the slabs (or their wrappers) extend up above the edge ofthe sheet when the sheet and the gum slabs are placed inside thepackage. A strip of adhesive could be applied to the inner back wall ofthe gum compartment of the package in a position approximately even withor overlapping the upper edge of the pouch. If the adhesive strip wassufficiently large it could allow both the pouch and the top portions ofthe gum slabs to stick to the inner surface of the package.Alternatively, two different strips of adhesive could be used, one toadhere the slabs (or their wrappers) to the package, and one to adherethe sheet to one or more inner walls or surfaces of the package. Thesetwo strips of adhesive could be located on the same inner back wall ofthe package, or, for example, one could be on the inner back wall of thepackage to adhere the top portions of the gum slabs to the inner backwall of the package and one on the inner front wall of the package toadhere the sheet to the inner front wall of the package. One potentialembodiment is illustrated in U.S. Provisional Patent Application No.60/570,004 entitled “Gum Slab Packaging with Adhesive Securement” filedMay 11, 2004, and designated as Docket No. 1421-23P in the law firm ofHoffman & Baron, LLP, the contents of which are incorporated byreference herein for all purposes.

It can be appreciated that there are several possible variations on thisgeneral theme. In addition, the adhesive need not be applied in stripsbut could be in another shape or arrangement. Hot wax is one example ofa type of adhesive.

As a further example, adhesive may be used to adhere the gum slabs to asheet and/or to adhere the sheet to one or more inner surfaces or wallsof the package. Such a configuration for a different package design isillustrated in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2003/0080020 (U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 10/003,336) entitled “Package Having ReleaseablySecured Consumable Products”, which is herein incorporated by referencefor all purposes.

Although the above-described packaging design has been described inconjunction with slab gum, it could also be adapted to work for stickgum, extruded gum, pellet gum, and candy-coated gum. In addition, eachcompartment could hold as few as one large piece of gum. Furthermore,the packaging design described herein could be used to hold other typesof individual pieces of consumable products (e.g., cookies, chocolatebars, taffy, toffee, fruit roll-ups, and so forth). Alternatively, itcould be used to sell, mail, distribute, or hold non-edible productssuch as photos, coupons, tickets, stamps, puzzle pieces, game pieces,and so forth. The individual items in the package may all be the same orthey may be different items that can be assembled together, or in thecase of edible products they may be different types or flavors. Thepackage could also be used to hold pharmaceuticals or nutraceuticalssuch as pills, vitamins, oral care strips, and so forth or items thatmay not be chewed or swallowed (e.g., chewing tobacco, pain relievingstrips for gum diseases, and so forth).

As can be appreciated, there are many advantages to the package design.One advantage relates to having a single row of gum slabs as compared totwo or more rows of gum slabs adjacent to each other. In this case, itis easier to extract a single piece at a time, and the remaining piecesare less likely to fall out of the packages. Furthermore, the packagehas a more pleasing and presentable appearance that may be conducive tosharing the gum products with others. Further, the package securelycloses and completely encloses the gum products. Not all of theseadvantages are necessarily found in each of the embodiments.

The foregoing description of the packaging design has been presented forpurposes of illustration and description. Furthermore, the descriptionis not intended to limit the invention to the form disclosed herein.Consequently, variations and modifications commensurate with the aboveteachings, and skill and knowledge of the relevant art, are within thescope of the invention. The embodiments described hereinabove arefurther intended to explain best modes known of practicing the inventionand to enable others skilled in the art to utilize the invention insuch, or other embodiments and with various modifications required bythe particular application(s) or use(s) of the invention. It is intendedthat the appended claims be construed to include alternative embodimentsto the extent permitted by the prior art.

1-57. (canceled)
 58. A package assembly for accommodating consumableproducts, said package assembly comprising: a package housing forsupporting said consumable products in a first and second plurality; oneof said first and second pluralities being removable from the other ofsaid first and second pluralities supported in said package.
 59. Apackage assembly of claim 58 wherein said first and second pluralitiesdefine first and second arrays of said products.
 60. A package assemblyof claim 59 wherein at least one of said arrays includes a bandsurrounding said products of said array.
 61. A package assembly of claim59 wherein at least one of said arrays includes a sheet surrounding saidproducts of said array.
 62. A package assembly of claim 61 wherein saidsheet is an open ended U-shaped member.
 63. A package assembly of claim61 wherein said sheet is adhesively secured to said package.
 64. Apackage assembly of claim 63 wherein said package housing includes aninterior wall surface and wherein said sheet is adhesively secured tosaid interior wall surface.
 65. A package assembly of claim 64 whereinsaid sheet and said products are adhesively secured to said interiorwall surface.
 66. A package assembly of claim 58 wherein said housingincludes a first and second compartments for accommodating respectivelysaid first and second pluralities, said second compartment beingremovably detachable from said first compartment.
 67. A package assemblyof claim 65 including said array of products being removable from saidcompartments.
 68. A package assembly of claim 59 wherein said packagehousing includes a housing interior for supporting at least one of saidfirst and second pluralities and an opening for accessing said one ofsaid first and second pluralities; and a flap for overlying saidopening, said flap being movable from an open condition to a closedcondition.
 69. A package assembly of claim 68 wherein said housingincludes a slot for removably accommodating said flap in said closedcondition.
 70. A package assembly of claim 69 wherein said slot isskewed.
 71. A package assembly of claim 68 wherein said flap overliessaid first and second arrays of said products in said closed condition.72. A package assembly of claim 59 wherein said package housing includesan interior and wherein first and second arrays of said product areadhesively secured in said package interior.
 73. A package assembly ofclaim 72 wherein said first and second arrays are unsecured to eachother.
 74. A package assembly of claim 72 wherein said first array ofsaid products is adhered to said interior wall surface and said secondarray of products is separately adhered to said interior wall surface.75. A package assembly of claim 74 wherein said first array of saidproducts is separable from said second array of said products.
 76. Apackage for containing at least two arrays of consumable products, eachsaid array including a plurality of said consumable products adjacentlyarranged, said package comprising: a package housing for separatelysupporting said product arrays so as to permit removal of one of saidarrays from the other said array; and a flap cover for enclosing saidproduct arrays, said flap cover being openable to permit removal of saidone array and reclosable to enclose said other array.
 77. A package ofclaim 76 wherein each said array is removably adhered to said packagehousing.
 78. A package of claim 77 further including a sheet surroundingeach array.
 79. A package of claim 78 wherein each said sheet is adheredto said package housing.
 80. A package of claim 76 wherein said flapincludes an end insertable into a slot on said housing for closing saidflap.
 81. A package of claim 80 wherein said end of said flap islaterally asymmetrical and wherein said slot of said housing is offsettoward one side to be in position to receive said end of said flap. 82.A package for containing at least two arrays of consumable products,each said array including a plurality of said consumable productsadjacently arranged, said package comprising: a package housing forsupporting at least one of said at least two arrays; at least another ofsaid two arrays being attached to a housing portion which is removablefrom said housing.
 83. A package of claim 82 wherein said at least twosaid arrays are unsecured to each other.
 84. A package of claim 82further including a flap cover for enclosing said product arrays.
 85. Apackage for containing at least two arrays of consumable products, eachsaid array including a plurality of said consumable products adjacentlyarranged, said package comprising: a package housing for supporting saidat least two arrays; said arrays being unsecured to each other; one ofsaid arrays being removable from said other array; and a flap closurefor enclosing said housing supporting said at least tow arrays and withsaid one array being removed.
 86. A package of claim 20 wherein saidhousing includes a slot for receiving an end of said flap.